Marketing
Advertising strategy
Almost every business needs to promote itself in some way, reaching out to customers and potential customers. For businesses with large numbers of target customers in well-defined market segments, advertising is often a cost-effective way of communicating with them. This briefing covers: • • • • Setting your promotional objectives and deciding whether to advertise. Determining your promotional budget. Deciding where and when to advertise. Measuring the effectiveness of your advertising campaign. • • Building brand awareness for a product makes the product easier to sell. It also makes it easier to launch new products. Making consumers feel good about your company can boost sales.
1.2 You may need to convey a specific one-off message to your market. • For example, informing people of a special offer, or a particular benefit of your product.
1.3 You may need to prompt specific action, such as the customer visiting your premises. • If you are building up a database of leads, your objective might be to gather the contact details of potential customers.
1 Your objectives
Before deciding whether to use advertising, clarify what you are trying to achieve. Your ultimate objective is probably to increase sales. But your promotional activities may focus on intermediate objectives that make sales and other business objectives easier at the end of the day. Draw up a list of SMART objectives (specific, measurable, agreed, realistic, time-limited), against which you can measure the effectiveness of your campaigns (see 6). 1.1 You may need to create awareness of something, or change customer attitudes. • Creating a reputation as the market leader may allow you to increase your prices and win long-term contracts.
England
Reviewed 01/12/08
Directors’ Briefing
• If your product is suitable, your objective may be to create sales there and then. • • • Keeping up ‘front of mind’ awareness encourages